Celebs and controversy: what you searched for online in 2014

TO provide a snapshot of what the thoughts and ponderings of Australians were throughout the year, Microsoft's search engine Bing has unveiled Australia's most searched terms for 2014. The results confirm we are a nation obsessed with pop culture and we never turn a blind eye to the controversial.

It was a big year in the world of celebrity, and it was the milestone moments spanning births, deaths and marriages that captivated search interest on celebrities. A second royal baby on the way for Kate Middleton and Prince William was announced to great delight, which caught the attention of Aussies following the visit of the royal duo to our shores this year.

To the envy of women around the globe, the world also witnessed eligible bachelor George Clooney wed Amal Alamuddin, while 2014 also saw the tragic deaths of celebrities Robin Williams and Paul Walker, which saw Williams as the 3rd most searched celebrity.

A clear front runner in the celebrity category was Miranda Kerr, beating Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus as most searched celebrity of 2014 in Australia. A local favourite, Miranda Kerr, took out a strong 42% lead over Jennifer Lawrence, who trailed behind her at 5th on the list.

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games movies.

Katy Perry made a 'roaring' head start to the charts, positioning herself as the most searched music artist for 2014, captivating Australian audiences with her Prismatic tour, while also landing as the 4th most searched celebrity in Australia in 2014.

Taylor Swift was the talk of 2014 with the release of her record-breaking album 1989, as well as controversially withdrawing her whole music catalog from Spotify. Despite this revelation, she went on to break sales records with her latest album release, positioning her 9th on the list. The most searched music artists by Aussies were female dominated, with only two male artists making the cut; One Direction positioned 2nd and Justin Bieber 3rd.

In the world of the silver screen, no surprises that the parody spawning movie Frozen secured the top spot in the most searched movie category for 2014. Theme song, 'Let it go' captured the hearts of children and adults alike across Australia and saw the Lion King topple from the mantle as Disney's most successful film yet. Wolf of Wall Street followed on in 2nd position and The Hunger Games in 3rd.

A scene from Disney's Frozen

"This year, the results from Bing Australia have shown us a unique insight into what people were wanting to know, find and learn as expressed through the top searches for 2014. The top trends this year have really shone a light on Australia's obsession with all things Hollywood, celebrity, music and movies," said Melissa Dewick, Microsoft Australia, consumer apps and services marketing manager.

"It's fascinating to see what Aussies searched for, and how this matched against the news cycle of the year, you can certainly spot the hugely viral moments and milestones that captivated people's need to know more and drove them to search proactively" she said.